1. Ask your child some questions the next time you watch a TV commercial or see a billboard: Is that advertisement trying to sell you something? If so, what? Is that product healthy for you? How is the sponsor of that product trying to get you to buy it?

• By making you feel unlovable. ("You won't be liked if you don't try this product.")
• By making you feel left out. ("Everyone is buying it, so don't be left out.")
• By making you feel inadequate. ("If you don't buy this product, you won't be able to do things as well as everyone else.")
• By making you feel less masculine or less feminine. ("If you don't use this product, members of the opposite sex won't find you attractive.")

How do you feel about the product now?

2. The next time your child is watching television, sit down and join him. What does your child like about the program? Talk with your child about whether people in real life look like the people on television or in the movies. What are the differences? How do the people he sees in movies and television make him feel about himself? Does he want to look like the people he sees on TV? Does he want to live the lifestyles he sees represented? Is this realistic?

3. The next time you and your child pass a billboard, see a television commercial, or notice a print ad in a magazine or newspaper, ask her about the advertising message. What is the ad really selling? A product? A feeling? A lifestyle? Does she believe everything the ad says? Can the product actually do what the ad promises? What else might the product or service do that the ad doesn't mention? Is the ad misleading in any way? Who is the ad targeting? Why?

4. Create your own commercials or ads. Ask your child to pick or create a product or service and then create an advertisement for it. Your child could act out a television commercial, write a radio script, or draw a print ad or billboard. Talk about why he used the images and words that he did. You can get into the act and create an ad, too! Talk about the thought process that you went through to create the ads.

Teaching Your Child to Choose Friends Wisely Is Important Because... Some Kids Use Drugs to Fit In and Belong

Wanting to fit in, to belong, is one of the most natural parts of growing up. In fact, if we really listen, we may find that, for some, it is the most important part of growing up. By teaching your child to choose friends wisely, you are giving her skills she needs to feel confident in her own judgment. This can help her resist peer influences to use alcohol, tobacco, or illegal drugs or engage in other dangerous behavior.

Kimberly and Caitlin's Story

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